The original Rudolph did not have a red nose. In that day and age, red noses were seen as an indicator of chronic alcoholism and Montgomery Ward didn’t want him to look like a drunkard. To complete the original picture, he was almost named Reginald or Rollo.

The Christmas wreath was originally hung as a symbol of Jesus. The holly represents his crown of thorns and the red berries the blood he shed.

The three traditional colors of most Christmas decorations are red, green and gold. Red symbolizes the blood of Christ, green symbolized life and rebirth, and gold represents light, royalty and wealth.

Tinsel was invented in 1610 in Germany and was once made of real silver.

The oldest artificial Christmas trees date back to the late 1800s and were made of green raffia (think grass hula skirts) or dyed goose feathers. Next the Addis Brush Company used their machinery that wove toilet brushes to create pine-like branches for artificial Christmas trees that were less flammable and could hold heavier decorations.

‘Jingle Bells’ – the popular Christmas song was composed by James Pierpont in Massachusetts, America. It was, however, written for thanksgiving and not Christmas.

Coca-Cola was the first company that used Santa Claus during the winter season for promotion.

Hallmark introduced their first Christmas cards in 1915.

The first recorded date of Christmas being celebrated on December 25th was in 336, during the time of the Roman Emperor Constantine. A few years later, Pope Julius I officially declared that the birth of Jesus would be celebrated on that day.

Outdoor Christmas lights on homes evolved from decorating the traditional Christmas tree and house with candles during the Christmas season. Lighting the tree with small candles dates back to the 17th century and originated in Germany before spreading to Eastern Europe.

That big, jolly man in the red suit with a white beard didn’t always look that way. Prior to 1931, Santa was depicted as everything from a tall gaunt man to a spooky-looking elf. He has donned a bishop's robe and a Norse huntsman's animal skin. When Civil War cartoonist Thomas Nast drew Santa Claus for Harper's Weekly in 1862, Santa was a small elflike figure who supported the Union. Nast continued to draw Santa for 30 years, changing the color of his coat from tan to the red he’s known for today.

Christmas 2018 countdown has already begun. Will you be ready???

Why do we love Christmas? It's all about the traditions. In this chaotic world we can miss the "good old days." Christmas reminds us of that time.

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I wanted to do something new and very creative with my 2012-20123 Christmas display. In January of 2012 I broke my ankle and was out of commission for 6 months. This gave me plenty of time to create and design my Gingerbread House for my 20112-2013 display. This display is made from scrap wood, pallets, and panelling.The size se is 5ftx5ft. The frame is made out of 2x2's and the roof as well. I decided to use brown panelling for the sides and roof of the house. I also made a chimmney. Made 2 windows and a door with a real handle. I cut out the icicles out of scrap wood and painted it white.. I then added candy canes to the sides of the Gingerbread house. There are about 650 lights to the house.

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I used poodle noodles from the dollar store to resemble candies. They were $1.00 each and I cut them to the size of candies. The longer coloured candies on the roof and chimney were also bought at the dollar store. The total cost of this project is approximately $50.00 and about 300 hours of hard labour. All the lights are led lights and were purchased at the end of christmas season at 75 percent off.

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]The frame of the Gingerbread house as shown in the pictures is made out of pallets that is 5feet x 5 feet. As seen in the pictures I used scrap 2x4's and 2x2's to build the walls and roof. The Sides of the house are made from left over panelling which is brown already. The icicles and trim were then painted white - 3 coats of white paint with a weather protected spray paint (clear). We get lots of snow up here.I used left over blue patterned plexi glass for the windows. All the wood is fastened with screws and some nails. If you want some plans for this Gingerbread House I went on the web site and found information on dog houses. I used a dog house blueprint but made my own measurements for the Gingerbread House. I hope this gives you an idea on how I built the Gingerbread house. Any other questions I will be happy to answer them.